At midnight on Dec. 31, 2017, the State of California together with various water agencies and municipalities intends to pull the plug on the lifeline to the Salton Sea. That action heralds the death of the local environment, dependent wildlife and thousands of people who can not afford to relocate. This despite a 2003 agreement whereby the state declared it would do all necessary to avoid such a reality.

We don’t hold the state to blame for this situation; it has been 100 years in the making. Nonsustainable farming practices, combined with 3 crops-a-year growing, in a desert which requires an overabundance of soil amendments, combined with a cheap and easy flushing of said chemicals, has led us to this point.

Now the scarcity of fresh water in Southern California has pushed the value of fresh water to the point that the cities can make the farmers richer by selling the water rights than they could ever be by farming.

And the Salton Sea is considered expendable in this trade off. But the true price of this water transfer can never be offset by money. Now we have 100 years of farm chemicals to consider. These toxins are now being contained by gravity and a coat of water. The end of “mitigation water” will change that. As the sea dries up, the toxins in the seabed will be exposed to the desert winds.

The local community already has the highest childhood asthma rates and the lowest per capita income in the state. In addition, the largest concentration of migratory birds in the Northern Hemisphere is already being impacted to the point of decimation. Over 400 species of birds are dependent on the sea — the last major wetlands in the Pacific Flyway.

It didn’t have to come to this. You were contacted 30 years ago with proposals to link the Salton Sea with the Sea of Cortez with the ultimate goal of having a saltwater source that could be desalinated and added to the California Aqueduct as a back up source of water to the cities.

That could still be the future. I understand that you are requesting proposals on importing sea water. But time is running out. It is estimated (by Bruce Wilcox, your appointee) that the cost of continuing the mitigation waters is $14 million a year. We suggest that this is the price for 15 years of inaction.

Again, we are not assessing blame for that inaction, but we see the state as the only hope for immediate action. Surely we could find $14 million from the 10-year plan for 2018 and a few more years worth from the upcoming water bond.

This will buy us time to see if there is value in the 10-year plan.

Time to look at proposals for import of seawater; time to do the EIR’s (on both sides of the border, if Mexico is the source); time to engineer and bring in life-sustaining water. Since the Salton Sea is already 50 percent more saline than seawater, we thus bring immediate relief to the environment.

We buy time to experiment with new technology for desalination. Time to turn what is now desperation into a hub of alternative energy. It is not too late. But you are our last hope. You could call this a plea for a stay of execution. It is also a plea for a positive future.

Email Desert Hot Springs resident Robert Terry of People Over Pollution at nospamram@gmail.com.

Elevated levels of hydrogen sulfide at the Salton Sea are causing the air to smell like rotten eggs. The stench comes during a heatwave that's causing near-record temperatures.
Zoe Meyers/The Desert Sun

Jay Calderon/The Desert Sun
A boat dock sits in just inches of water at the southeastern edge of the Salton Sea in this August 2013 photo. Rep. Raul Ruiz urged federal officials on Thursday to designate as much of the Salton Sea as appropriate for renewable energy development.
Jay Calderon/The Desert Sun
Stakeholders from across the region on Wednesday urged state officials to finally take action on the Salton Sea. In this file photo, a boat dock sits in just inches of water at the southeastern edge of the sea. Desert Sun file photo
Friends of the Salton Sea State Recreation Area seeks volunteers for the 2014-2015 Salton Sea Discovery Kids Camp program. (760) 289-9455 A boat dock sits in just inches of water at the southeastern edge of the Salton Sea in this August 2013 file photo.
Jay Calderon/The Desert Sun Renewable energy opportunities at the Salton Sea will be discussed at the Southern California Energy Summit.
JayCalderon/ The Desert Sun A boat dock sits in just inches of water at the southeastern edge of the Salton Sea, Thursday, August 22nd, 2013. Jay Calderon/The Desert Sun
Jay Calderon/The Desert Sun